Magical musical journey

MANILA, Philippines -  On June 18, the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, the country’s national orchestra, made history when it performed at the Carnegie Hall in New York City. This marked the first time a Filipino orchestra has performed in the US. It was a dream for all the musicians that came true through the hard work of many, but especially the untiring efforts of CCP trustee Nedy Tantoco and Maestro Olivier Ochanine, who ended his term as PPO music director with the Carnegie debut.

The PPO’s journey to Carnegie Hall was a long three years in the making. In the beginning, it didn’t seem possible. But this year, everything fell into place.

All 80 members of the PPO traveled to New York City, accompanied by a support staff of 10 that included me. My story begins to the tune of Frank Sinatra’s New York, New York, a melody PPO members hummed while putting their names on their suitcases. They were in high spirits and the air was thick with excitement on the day of our departure.

During the ride to NAIA Terminal 2 to board PR 126 and while waiting at the airport and even during the two-hour stopover at Vancouver, the musicians kept on taking selfies and group shots. 

We arrived in New York City and checked in at Hotel Pennsylvania, which was right in the center of mid-town Manhattan. Immediately after checking in, they poured out onto the streets to explore the sights, beginning with Madison Square Garden which was just across the hotel.

But we were there to work, too. The days before the concert were spent in meetings with CCP support staff and New York logistics staff, while the PPO musicians rehearsed at the ballroom of the hotel.

The PPO Open Rehearsal on June 17 was held at the Gold Ballroom of Pennsylvania Hotel. Friends and relatives of the musicians waited patiently in the corridor outside the ballroom one hour before the open rehearsal started. The members of the orchestra were smiling when they saw that even their open rehearsal was Standing Room Only. To us, this was a sign of better things to come.

We spoke to some Filipino guests who watched the open rehearsals about how they felt after watching the PPO perform.

Nilda Magat, a long-time resident of New York, came with her friend very early and bought 10 CDs of the PPO to give to friends. She said, “We are very proud of the PPO. Even if I am limping, I took this opportunity to watch the rehearsal because once you hear them playing, just close your eyes, the PPO’s music will take you beyond Carnegie Hall and back home to the Philippines.” 

Francis Favis, a percussionist student at Ilinois State University, said “it was virtuosic playing and a full sound.” 

Terry Dineros, also a New York City resident, said that the PPO performance was “GREAT” – all caps.

On the day of the performance, we arrived early at Carnegie Hall and got the surprise of our lives when we saw the lobby of Carnegie. It was jam-packed with people – Filipinos and Americans. People were spilling out into the sidewalks and streets. We were informed that Filipinos had bought their tickets in advance, planned reunions after the concert and were excitedly looking forward to a wonderful evening of music.

The doors of the Isaac Stern Auditorium opened at 8 p.m. and finally the PPO stepped onto the Ronald O. Perelman stage. The hall was full to the rafters! 

As soon as the PPO played the National Anthem, tears flowed – from the PPO members to members of the audience. It was indeed very emotional. 

The program for the evening featured Dmitri Shostakovich’s Festive Overture, Op. 96, Jean Sibelius’ Violin Concerto in D minor, Op. 47 with Diomedes Saraza as soloist and Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18 with Cecile Licad as soloist. The finale was Redentor Romero’s Philippine Portraits. 

Towards the end of the program, when the audience kept clapping, asking for an encore, Maestro Ochanine told the audience that the encore piece would show the people how much the PPO loved them. The piece was Gaano Kita Kamahal. 

The Filipinos started to cry and on the last note everyone stood up to give the PPO a rousing standing ovation. 

This one summer evening in June was truly a magical moment for the PPO and everyone who was there at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

The Carnegie Hall concert was made possible by Philippine Airlines (the official carrier), Smart Infinity, Rustan’s Commercial Corp., One Meralco Foundation, with the support of PLDT Smart Foundation, Federal Land Inc. and Metrobank Card Corp. Proceeds from the concert will go to a housing project of the Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation (PDRF) in Tacloban, Leyte for Typhoon Yolanda survivors.